Unburdening your claims teams by upgrading customer support

There’s a difference between a tough conversation and a stressful conversation. 

Tough conversations are necessary, especially when you’re talking about life and death. But when you’re having stressful conversations that consistently leave both parties feeling frustrated, out of their depth, and unsatisfied, it’s time to look for ways to improve. 

Think of the beneficiaries that claims representatives are working with. They are more than grief-stricken—they urgently need help with everything from funeral planning to settling a loved one’s financial affairs. When they have questions and issues that go far beyond the scope of a claims representatives’ responsibilities and expertise, it’s a recipe for dissatisfaction, stress, and erosion of trust. 

They need bereavement support that gives peace of mind that goes beyond the financial—something more and more life insurance carriers are providing through expert partners like Empathy. 

By elevating the beneficiary experience, it’s important to remember that the claims representatives are also getting a boost: less stress, less frustration, and a more focused set of tasks. 

In essence, they’re having better conversations. 

When unmet needs are addressed

For beneficiaries, and all families grieving the passing of a loved one, there is a massive need that has historically been left unresolved. 

At work, at home, even among their religious communities, they are largely on their own to deal with an average bureaucratic workload that totals 420 hours over more than a year, on average. And families typically find little meaningful support for what amounts to a time crunch and a financial crunch, on top of the strain of grief. 

Claims representatives are tasked with providing aid to beneficiaries at a massively challenging time in their lives. And many support teams, from claim representatives to agents, are getting better training in how to speak to the grieving. 

But by understanding beneficiaries’ shortfall of support—in a deep and specific way—the impact life insurance carriers can make is enormous. 

Better experiences for claims teams

In the aftermath of loss, a beneficiary’s policy is a lifeline to immediate financial stability while their loved one’s estate is tied up during probate. 

With comprehensive bereavement support, claims teams have another lifeline they can offer, to help with emotional needs, legal responsibilities, and bureaucratic challenges. 

This extra super power gives them the capability to satisfy their customers in new ways, while addressing all their questions, at no extra cost. The results have been significant: Empathy’s partners have seen a 35% reduction in claims operations costs due to cutback in calls. 

With fewer calls, and a tight focus on the claims experience, claims teams can focus on what they do best: providing financial peace of mind and achieving excellence within their sphere of expertise.

Lessening the burden on claims representatives, while improving the beneficiary’s experience, is a win-win that creates goodwill and trust on both ends.  

The ROI of elevating the claims experience

By providing comprehensive bereavement support to beneficiaries, carriers are seeing results that go far beyond the reduction in claims operations costs. 

For example, Empathy research shows:

• A 2X increase in asset retention for beneficiaries who receive Empathy services. 

• A 3X increase in beneficiaries becoming high-intent leads, compared with the industry standard. 

The takeaway: Better conversations lead to better outcomes, and employees who are happier in their jobs. 

By taking care of families when they need it most, carriers more fully embrace their fundamental principles—and these values create value.